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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 1518.PDF
MINISTRY OF AVIATION Air liavisation Order i960 Permit to Fly and Exemption She Minister of Aviation in exercise of his powers under Articles 4 and of the Air Navigation Order I960, as amended, hereby - (1) permits the following aircraft, that is to say - VTCKERS KOVERGHAST VA3-001, so long as it is operated by British United Airways to fly within the United Kingdom without a certificate of airworthiness being in force in respect thereof as required by Article 4(1) of the 3aid Order; and (2) exempts the said aircraft and the operator, commander and crew thereof so long as it is operated by British United Airways from every Article of the said Order except the following, that is to say - Articles 4, 3c to 42 inclusive, 44, 54, 55, 69,'71, 72, 73 and 75. siiiiili This permit to fly and exemption org.^ . . • ••••••;••. :•:-:•: m Historic document: the opening sentences of the Mo A Permit to Fly, issued July 13, 1962 Across the Sands of Dee .. . Dee route was something of an unknown quantity. Local-council agreement had still to be obtained, and the whole com mercial organization of the service had yet to be established under Mr C. G. Carroll, British United's commercial manager. First approaches to the Ministry of Aviation in February brought indica tions of surprise that plans for a sche duled service were so far advanced that a service was contemplated in the summer. But never at any time did the Ministry place difficulties in the way. Over a period which must have tested their flexibility to the full, the service was given every encouragement. They undertook at once to give all possible assistance and to meet the time-scale. First steps in the legislative process were taken in March, when it was decided that the Civil Aviation (Licen sing) Act, 1960, was not to be a means of regulating Hovercraft services. The Minister (then Mr Peter Thorneycroft) also agreed that the service would be exempted from the need to obtain an Air Service Licence. This was a major step forward. As the operation was to be mainly over water, the Ministry of Aviation consulted the Ministry of Transport and the Air Registration Board, with a view to considering jointly what regulations should be drawn up to cover the service. Essentially, legislation for this experi mental operation had to be designed around VA-3. As it had yet to become airborne, at this stage it would have been premature to draw up regulations in any detail; the Ministries preferred to wait until development had estab lished the nature of operations. Never theless, it was agreed that the fullest freedom to develop the service would be given provided safety was not jeopar dised, and that control would be exer cised by issuing a Permit to Fly on the ARB's recommendation, exempting the vehicle and operation from the inap propriate section of the Air Navigation Order, 1960. Eight main points were to be considered: (1) collision regulations; (2) limiting wind and sea states; (3) manning and crew qualifications; (4) life-saving equipment; (5) lighting and signalling equipment; (6) radio commu nications; (7) safety of operating bases and (8) supervision of actual service. From the start Vickers had adopted a policy of anticipating such require ments and meeting them more than half- Air-Cushion Vehicles FLIGHT International supplement, 23 August ]%•> way; VA-3's equipment includes VHF. Decca, and lifebelts for each (rearward- facing) seat. Thus none of these condi tions presented any real problem, al though the Rules for the Prevention of Collision to Vehicles at Sea raised some nice points about the HovercratVs function. Sea trials during June, in which the Ministries participated, confirmed the draft performance enve lope, and the way was clear for award of the Permit to Fly. It was granted on July 13, a week before the service began. Meanwhile, British United's shipping directors had greeted the idea of an operation with enthusiasm. Furness, Withy and British Commonwealth at once offered the services of young mariners holding Masters' Certificates for training as Hovercraft crews. One director was Mr R. Seton-Winton, a director also of Furness, Withy & Co Ltd, British United's general agents in Liverpool. In the negotiations which then began with local councils, the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, and with the Dee and Clwyd River Board his local knowledge was invaluable and his enthusiasm wonderfully infectious. Feeling rather like mad inventors, a small BUA and Vickers party set out from Chester, armed with a wooden box containing a model of VA-3, to interview the water boards and the town clerks of the local councils. A measure of secrecy had obviously been necessary, and the melodramatic poten tial of the situation was one of the lighter memories of the preparation for service. In fact, once the idea was explained it required little selling; the party's recep tion everywhere was enthusiastic. So far as the actual operation was concerned, the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, represented by the secretary and by Capt W. R. Colbeck' (brother of the head of the Southern Divisional ATCC), were particularly helpful, offering information about sea and sand conditions off the Dee Estuary and saying that VA-3 could be unloaded with Docks facilities when it arrived in the Mersey. And the Dee and Clwyd River Board offered to make available a large study-model of the estuary should it be needed. These preliminaries were followed with formal letters of applications to operate a service; letters to the Admir alty to ensure that the area was clear of mines; and further meetings with the Ministries of Aviation and Transport. As the news became public, other local authorities wrote expressing interest. A slight shock was a reminder from Trinity House that "the Corporation • is the pilotage authority for the Dee Pilotage District, in which pilotage is compulsory for all passenger-carrying vessels over 50 tons gross." Fortunately this is a hurdle which has yet to be 37
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